


Incarnation Blues

by RobberBaroness



Category: Highwayman - The Highwaymen (Song)
Genre: Bittersweet, Gen, Reincarnation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-09
Updated: 2020-05-09
Packaged: 2021-03-02 22:49:20
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,019
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24084631
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RobberBaroness/pseuds/RobberBaroness
Summary: Racing a science vessel out of the clutches of pirates is enough to get anyone thinking about the afterlife.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 10
Collections: Jukebox 2020





	Incarnation Blues

**Author's Note:**

  * For [gamerfic](https://archiveofourown.org/users/gamerfic/gifts).



“Do you ever think about the afterlife, McCormick?”

“A rather morbid subject, captain.

“Maybe. I don’t see it that way.” The captain inclined his craggy face towards the open sky. “Think of all the possibilities out there. If heaven and hell are real, they could be on a distant planet. If reincarnation’s the ticket- which I think it is- then we could come back as a kind of alien no human has ever seen before.”

“And either way, it isn’t so bad if the pirates finally get us, because there’s more of existence where this one came from?” McCormick asked her captain with a sardonic smile on her face.

“Got it in one,” he admitted. “Damn. If they don’t catch up to us soon, we can probably make it to the nearest base before the end of the next 24-hour cycle. I just wish I was more sure we had that time.”

Flying across the sky in an outdated vessel from a government science program that really needed more funding, the crew of the Hypatia were an unlikely target of piracy- but then, the captain had never heard of pirates who weren’t desperate. Either they thought they could capture and ransom the crew or else they intended to simply blow the ship up for scrap- either way, he was not commanding a ship built for combat. They’d already taken damage on their first encounter, and would almost certainly not survive a second one at the rate they were going.

“You know what we might have to do?” he asked. “We might have to use the escape pods. Take the flora samples, abandon ship, let the pirates have all the scrap they want. Let the Hypatia get its second life as an outlaw vehicle. If we get a second life, I don’t see why a starship shouldn’t.”

McCormick didn’t look pleased by the idea.

“If you tell me to do it, I’ll do it, but you can’t make me happy about it. If scrap is what they’re after, our escape pods may still be targets.”

“Hmm.” The captain never showed much emotion in his voice- or rather, it stayed at the same kindly, even-tempered pitch no matter his mood or the circumstances. It was impossible for McCormick to tell how seriously he was taking her concern by voice alone, but then, they’d been working together for years. If she brought up a concern, he damn well knew she meant it.

“You know I’m right.”

“Yes, I know it. And the escape pods are even less armored than we are. Back to Plan A, and flooring it like the devil until we reach base. Keep my mind off things, if you have a moment. Keep talking to me.”

“Um…” McCormick flailed about for a topic, then remembered their previous discussion. “What makes you believe in reincarnation, sir?”

“Nothing provable. Just a few dreams, a few memories. Some things that seem to resonate with me. There was a poem I read back in school that kept me up at night, had me convinced I used to rob land vehicles until the government’s men caught up to me. Would make all this business with the pirates poetic, in a way, if it weren’t for you and the rest of the crew.”

“I’ll come to thee by moonlight, though hell should bar the way?”

“That’s the one. I guess all kids have to read it at some point, but it didn’t baffle me the way poems usually did. Woke me up, I guess you could say. Stuck with me. You ever have that experience?”

“I’m a scientist, captain. If nothing ever stuck with me when I was in school, I wouldn’t be doing what I’m doing.”

But her mind wasn’t on memories of classwork or the captain’s talk of reincarnation at the moment. It was busy calculating the odds of reaching the base within 24 hours versus the speed at which she’d last seen the pirate ship moving. It wasn’t a favorable equation. McCormick checked the monitors and sucked in her breath at an uncomfortably familiar sight. It was that same pinprick of light, too bright and close to be a star, reappearing in the corner of the outside screen.

“We’ve got pirates, captain.”

“Shit.” He glanced at the monitor to confirm. “Alright. I think we both know what we have to do. Get the flora samples, get everyone onto the pods. I’ll keep them busy for as long as I can.”

“But sir-”

“That’s an order!” He’d never shouted at her before in all the years they’d known each other. Almost immediately his face softened. “Come on, McCormick. We’ve both got jobs to do.”

“Yes, sir,” she said, snapping back into emergency mode. The alarm was going off in the ship, and she didn’t have much time left to grab the precious samples if they were all to get to the pods. She could think about the captain later-

No. She could think about her captain later, but she couldn’t put aside thoughts of her friend. She cast one look back as she stood at the doorway, and saw him give one of his trademark slow smiles.

“I’ll come for thee by moonlight,” he said, “though hell should bar the way.”

  
  


***

McCormick’s pod made it to base with relatively little damage, as did the flora samples she carried with her. She supposed that was a victory of some kind. The base could mobilize ships with real weapons to go after the pirates, and if she were in a vengeful mood, she supposed that might make her feel better. Instead, she just waited in a bedroom with a cup of tea as reports came in of the other pods reaching base.

Every one came. All except the main ship, of course. Just one more incarnation, if the captain was right.

McCormick looked outside the window to the grey planetside rain. It had been a long time since she’d been on land, and she’d almost forgotten about rain. Something in the gentle tapping of the drops against the window reminded her of her captain’s voice.


End file.
